Jamie Oliver has joined calls for the Government to give hard-up kids free school meals in the holidays.
The TV chef hit out as a survey revealed a quarter of teens have pals too poor to buy food. The findings that shame Britain were blasted by England footie ace Callum Wilson.
The celebrity chef is calling for a huge expansion of free school meals to tackle child poverty. He says the Government must act now as a survey shows one in four secondary schoolchildren know someone their age who regularly skips meals and goes hungry. The 48-year-old is campaigning for all primary school kids whose families are on universal credit to receive free school food.
He said: “We know child hunger is a real issue affecting British families. And the school holidays can be especially challenging, particularly for those on low incomes. These findings highlight just how urgent the situation is. Free school meals can’t just be limited to term time if we truly want to help people and the Government must act now to continue to provide this vital support.”
The figures, collected for food bank charity the Trussell Trust, also found 77% of kids feel food poverty has worsened in the last year. And 88% of the 1,000 quizzed admitted feeling worried about the number going hungry.
Some 800,000 children living in poverty miss out on free school meals – as rules only cover kids from Universal Credit households earning less than £7,400 a year from work. And the Government only gave vulnerable kids food vouchers during holidays after a campaign by England footballer Marcus Rashford in 2020.
Since then it has been left to councils to run schemes, which means families face a postcode lottery. England and Newcastle star Callum Wilson last night joined Jamie in slamming the Tories’ lack of support.
On a recent visit to Gateshead food bank, Callum, 31, said: “The statistics from the Trussell Trust are shocking. As someone who grew up in a household that benefited from the support of the local food bank, it’s an issue that’s very personal to me. Footballers are privileged – I am, but I wasn’t always in that situation. I believe everyone should have enough money in their pocket to afford the essentials in life – it’s a basic human right.”
The Trussell Trust distributed 2.5 million emergency food parcels between 2020 and 2021 – and 980,000 went to kids. Among those struggling is Keira Smith, an A-level student living in supported accommodation in south east London.
Keira, 18, said: “It’s got to the point where I’m unable to feed myself, because it’s between eating and having somewhere to sleep and obviously I’m going to choose no food. I can’t even count how many people I’ve met in similar situations. I’m disappointed we’ve ended up in this position as a country.
She added: “My school is one of the poorest in the borough. There are only three or four people who aren’t on free school meals, which is crazy. Most people, including myself, take food from school so we have something in the evenings. I often see younger kids who don’t get free school meals pretending to eat when sitting with peers.”
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Emma Reekie, of the Trussell Trust, said: “We’re in a position where young people can’t just be young people because they are worrying about where their next meal is coming from. We now have a generation who think using food banks is the norm – and that’s really sad.”
Among them is mum Lowri Williams, who relies on universal credit. The 52-year-old, who lives in Blackpool with daughter Millie, 14, said: “My dad actually pays for our food shop each week but he’s only on a pension and is struggling himself. It’s a horrible, horrible feeling, but we have no other option.”
Lowri, who works in freelance business support, added: “There are days where a lot of the time we’re looking for £10, and we can’t even scrape that together – and we never have any petrol so we can’t go anywhere.” Labour’s Deputy Leader Angela Rayner said: “The Tories are complacent in the face of the misery their policies have caused. Family finances are being squeezed to breaking point and children are going hungry.”
Emma Lewell-Buck, Labour MP for South Shields, added: “A food bank for now is part of the welfare state. The Government have normalised it. They’re presiding over generations of children where poverty and going hungry is going to be the norm instead of the exception.”
As well as free school meals expansion, Jamie Oliver also campaigns for healthier food for kids – and teaching them how to cook at school. A government spokesperson said: “There are 400,000 fewer children in poverty since 2010. We’re providing record financial support worth an average £3,300 per household to ease cost of living pressures. We have raised benefits, increased the National Living Wage and are supporting families with food, energy and other essential costs.”
Government should listen to the young
Beth Margaret, 20, grew up in a single-parent family where money was tight. The youngster, from Truro, Cornwall, has two younger siblings and their mum, an NHS healthcare assistant, often struggled to get food on the table.
She said: “I definitely think the summer holidays were a big stress – not knowing whether she’d be able to feed us or if she was going to have the time, because she had to work so much. I had free school meals at primary school but didn’t qualify anymore at secondary school, so if my mum didn’t have any money we would have to go to my nan’s house and she would help us.”
Beth, who has just completed her second year studying social sciences at the University of Bath, joined the Trussell Trust’s Stand For Change campaign to ensure other young people are better supported. She said: “I’m definitely worried. Covid shone a light on the fact that children who are from financially insecure backgrounds don’t have the same support when they’re not in education and we’re trying to change that.
“The Government should listen to young people, especially young people who are in positions that politicians are supposedly trying to tackle. This is the only way change will happen.”
